California Department of Veterans Affairs Arnold Schwarzenegger Governor Roger Brautigan Secretary Rocky Chavez Undersecretary Ted Puntillo Deputy Secretary Veterans Services Craig Osborn Manager Veterans Services Outreach Staff Christopher Colbert Veterans Benefits Outreach Coordinator Zainab Noah Veterans Benefits Outreach Coordinator Customer Call Center 1.800.952.5626 Website: www.cdva.ca.gov

VETERANS SERVICES DIVISION 1227 O Street, Suite 105 Sacramento, CA 95814 916.653.2573 916.653.2563 FAX

California Action Plan for Reintegration

Financial Assistance for Veterans Operation Helping HEAL Inc Our primary goal is to provide stop-gap assistance to United States veterans and service members who experience unforeseeable, temporary and undue hardship for reasons generally beyond their control. The veterans’ or service members’ needs would generally arise from unreasonable gaps in the receipt of pay or benefits justly due the veteran or service member as a direct result of his or her service to the United States. In order to serve as many United States veterans and service members as possible, Operation Helping HEAL, Inc., is not intended to be a long-term source of income or services to any individual. Qualified persons having repetitive financial hardships or a need for ongoing services will be referred to an appropriate agency for such challenges. In order to find further information and qualification guidelines go to http://www.helpingheal.org/assistance-guidelines.htm Unmet Needs Program The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Foundation is a registered 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization that relies on public donations. The VFW and its Foundation have the same commitment: to improve the lives of veterans and service personnel, their families and their communities. The VFW Foundation's mission is to support programs to increase awareness of the sacrifices of America's veterans; to promote citizenship education, volunteerism and positive youth programs; and to provide aid for veterans and their families in need of medical, rehabilitative, educational and employment services. With the help of corporate sponsors like Vermont American, the VFW Foundation receives funding to establish, administer and promote the Unmet Needs Program. For further information on how to go about applying for this program go to: http://www.unmetneeds.com/ApplyForAssistance.aspx

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Financial Aid for Veterans and Their Dependents There are many educational benefits available for Veterans and their dependents in terms of financial aid. The first step to finding out what financial aid benefits you or your dependents might qualify for is to go to http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/ and complete a FAFSA application. Aside from the benefits that the FAFSA might offer there are several other programs that Veterans and their dependents might qualify for. Below are some other educational programs that Veterans and their dependents might qualify for: Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance Program (DEA) Of particular interest is the Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance Program (DEA). It provides up to 45 months of education and training opportunities to eligible dependents of certain veterans. To be eligible, you must be the son, daughter, or spouse of a veteran who died or is permanently and totally disabled as the result of a service-connected disability, or who died while such a disability was in effect, or is MIA or captured in the line of duty by a hostile force, or is forcibly detained or interned in the line of duty by a foreign government or power. Sons and daughters must be between the ages of 18 and 26. Spousal benefits end 10 years from the date the VA finds the spouse as eligible or from the date of death of the veteran. To apply, complete VA Form 22-5490, Application for Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance. For more information, call 1-888-GIBILL-1 (1-888-442-4551). Federal Benefits for Veterans and Dependents Updated annually by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the publication Federal Benefits for Veterans and Dependents contains information about education and training benefits available to veterans and eligible dependents. [VA Pamphlet 80-02-1, 114 pages, Stock Number 051-000-00225-3.] The booklet may be obtained free of charge from VA hospitals or regional offices. To request a copy, visit your nearest VA facility, call 1-800-827-1000 or write to Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Public Affairs (80D), 810 Vermont Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20420. It is also available for download free at http://www.va.gov/pubaff/fedben/Fedben.pdf from the VA's web site. The publication can also be purchased for $5.00 ($6.25, international customers) from the US Government Printing Office, Superintendent of Documents, PO Box 371954, Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7954. It is also available online at http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/cic_text/fed_prog/va_benefits/index.htm from the Consumer Information Center (CIC). Military Officers Association of America (MOAA) MOAA offers several educational assistance programs, including interest-free loans, grants and the American Patriot Scholarship. For more information, send email to edassist@moaa.org.

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ThanksUSA Scholarship Program ThanksUSA is a non-profit tax exempt charitable organization focused on (Members of the reserves who have been activated to full-time duty and federalized members of the National Guard are eligible.) Dependent children (including adopted and stepchildren) must be age 24 and under as of the deadline. The deadline is May 30. Recipients are selected based on financial need, academic performance, leadership and community service. A preference is given to students who have studied a foreign language. For more information, call 1-877-THX-USAS (1-877-849-8727), write to ThanksUSA Scholarship Program, Scholarship America, c/o Shellee Hintz, One Scholarship Way, PO Box 297, Saint Peter, MN 56082, or send email to shintz@scholarshipamerica.org. Military.com Has a good guide to state educational benefits for veterans and their dependents that can be found at: http://www.military.com/Education/Content?file=state_benefits.htm ElderWeb A source of benefits that is often overlooked are benefits available to veterans and their surviving spouses. These benefits include pensions, payments for nursing home or home care, prescription drugs, reimbursement for the cost of adapting a home or car for a disability, and more. If you are a veteran, or the surviving spouse of a veteran, you may be unaware that these types of benefits are available. However, figuring out what benefits you might be eligible for is best done by contacting the Veterans Benefits Administration because there are a confusing array of benefits which vary depending on income, time of service, whether or not the veteran has a service-related disability, and the type of disability they have. A sampling of benefits you might be eligible for include:

Veterans Pensions Medical Care Benefits Long Term Care Benefits Burial Benefits War Time Periods

Further information on these benefits and how to apply for it can be found at: http://www.elderweb.com/home/node/2805 California Military Family Relief Fund The California Military Family Relief Fund (CMFRF) was established to provide short term, financial assistance in the form of grants to California National Guard members and/or families impacted by mobilization and deployment who meet criteria listed below:

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Current member of the California National Guard in good standing. Current California resident. Deployment to active duty for at least 60 consecutive days in Title 10

USC status. Member’s military salary has decreased by 10 percent or household

income of member's family has decreased by at least 10 percent from income prior to deployment.

For further information on how to apply for this program go to their website at http://www.calguard.ca.gov/j1/Pages/CMFRF.aspx Workforce Investment Board Financial Assistance for veterans seeking a job. Contact WIB at 1-707-863-3568 veteran’s hotline. For direct contact call Jesse Stewart at 1-707-863-3555 or via email at jstewart@solanowib.org.